Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness

Chapter 1: Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness

Chapter 1 Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Define strategic competitiveness, strategy, competitive advantage, above-average returns, and the strategic management process. 2. Describe the competitive landscape and explain how globalization and technological changes shape it. 3. Use the industrial organization (I/O) model to explain how firms can earn above-average returns. 4. Use the resource-based model to explain how firms can earn above average-returns. 5. Describe vision and mission and discuss their value. 6. Define stakeholders and describe their ability to influence organizations. 7. Describe the work of strategic leaders. 8. Explain the strategic management process.

CHAPTER OUTLINE

Opening Case The Global Impact of the Golden Arches THE COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE The Global Economy Strategic Focus Starbucks is a New Economy Multinational THE I/O MODEL OF ABOVE-AVERAGE RETURNS Strategic Focus The Airlines Industry Exemplifies the I/O Model – Imitation and Poor Performance THE RESOURCE-BASED MODEL OF ABOVE-AVERAGE RETURNS VISION AND MISSION Vision Mission STAKEHOLDERS Classifications of Stakeholders STRATEGIC LEADERS The Work of Effective Strategic Leaders Predicting Outcomes of Strategic Decisions: Profit Pools THE STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS SUMMARY REVIEW QUESTIONS EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES VIDEO CASE

1-1 Chapter 1: Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness

LECTURE NOTES

Chapter Introduction: You may want to begin this lecture with a general comment that Chapter 1 provides an overview of the strategic management process. This chapter introduces a number of key terms and models that students will study in more detail in Chapters 2 through 13. Stress the importance of students paying careful attention to the concepts introduced in this chapter so that they are well-grounded in strategic management concepts before proceeding further.

OPENING CASE The Global Impact of the Golden Arches McDonald’s is a global company with broad market penetration and an extremely strong brand. It is larger and more successful than its rivals. As the case notes, however, McDonald’s success makes it an easy target. Public reaction to a 2012 ad turned from positive to negative as criticism of its food and link to the obesity problem were spread via social media. The company responded by offering healthy menu options and including nutritional information on its packaging. It also has added Wi-Fi in its stores to attract more customers (especially students). Even though the company is successful it must be constantly aware of changing conditions that might impact its costs, demand, and ability to perform.

Teaching Note: To initiate discussion, ask how the case lays the groundwork for the importance of strategy as defined in the chapter—the coordinated set of commitments and actions designed to achieve competitive advantage. Ask students identify other ways that McDonald’s has responded to the many environmental changes that it is experiencing. The case also provides a nice lead-in to discuss global strategy and how companies compete in very different markets. Ask students if they have been to a McDonald’s in another country and, if so, to identify some of the ways the company caters to local conditions.

Define strategic competitiveness, strategy, competitive advantage, 1 above-average returns, and the strategic management process.

Strategic competitiveness is achieved when a firm successfully formulates and implements a value-creating strategy. By implementing a value-creating strategy that current and potential competitors are not simultaneously implementing and that competitors are unable to duplicate, or find too costly to imitate, a firm achieves a competitive advantage.

Strategy can be defined as an integrated and coordinated set of commitments and actions designed to exploit core competencies and gain a competitive advantage.

So long as a firm can sustain (or maintain) a competitive advantage, investors will earn above-average returns. Above-average returns represent returns that exceed returns that investors expect to earn from other investments with similar levels of risk (investor © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

1-2 Chapter 1: Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness uncertainty about the economic gains or losses that will result from a particular investment). In other words, above average-returns exceed investors’ expected levels of return for given risk levels.

Teaching Note: Point out that in the long run, firms must earn at least average returns and provide investors with average returns if they are to survive. If a firm earns below-average returns and provides investors with below-average returns, investors will withdraw their funds and place them in investments that earn at least average returns. At this point it may be useful to highlight the role institutional investors play in regulating above average performances.

In smaller new venture firms, performance is sometimes measured in terms of the amount and speed of growth rather than more traditional profitability measures—new ventures require time to earn acceptable returns.

A framework that can assist firms in their quest for strategic competitiveness is the strategic management process, the full set of commitments, decisions and actions required for a firm to systematically achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns. This process is illustrated in Figure 1.1.

FIGURE 1.1 The Strategic Management Process

Figure 1.1 illustrates the dynamic, interrelated nature of the elements of the strategic management process and provides an outline of where the different elements of the process are covered in this text.

Feedback linkages among the three primary elements indicate the dynamic nature of the strategic management process: strategic inputs, strategic actions, and strategic outcomes.

 Analysis, in the form of information gained by scrutinizing the internal environment and scanning the external environment, are used to develop the firm's vision and mission.

 Strategic actions are guided by the firm's vision and mission, and are represented by strategies that are formulated or developed and subsequently implemented or put into action.

 Desired performance—strategic competitiveness and above-average returns—result when a firm is able to successfully formulate and implement value-creating strategies that others are unable to duplicate.

 Feedback links the elements of the strategic management process together and helps firms continuously adjust or revise strategic inputs and strategic actions in order to achieve desired strategic outcomes.

In addition to describing the impact of globalization and technological change on the current business environment, this chapter also discusses two approaches to the strategic management process. The first, the industrial organization model, suggests that the external environment should be considered as the primary determinant of a firm’s strategic actions. The second is the resource-based model, which perceives the firm’s resources and capabilities (the internal environment) as critical links to strategic competitiveness. Following the discussion in this chapter, as well as in Chapters 2 and 3, students should see that these models must be integrated to achieve strategic competitiveness.

Describe the competitive landscape and explain how 2 globalization and technological changes shape it.

THE COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

The competitive landscape can be described as one in which the fundamental nature of competition is changing in a number of the world’s industries. Further, the boundaries of industries are becoming blurred and more difficult to define.

Consider recent changes that have taken place in the telecommunication and TV industries— e.g., not only cable companies and satellite networks compete for entertainment revenue from television, but telecommunication companies also are stepping into the entertainment business through significant improvements in fiber-optic lines. Partnerships further blur industry boundaries (e.g., MSNBC is co-owned by NBC, itself owned by General Electric and Microsoft).

The contemporary competitive landscape thus implies that traditional sources of competitive advantage—economies of scale and large advertising budgets—may not be as important in the future as they were in the past. The rapid and unpredictable technological change that characterizes this new competitive landscape implies that managers must adopt new ways of thinking. The new competitive mind-set must value flexibility, speed, innovation, integration, and the challenges that evolve from constantly changing conditions.

A term often used to describe the new realities of competition is hypercompetition, a condition that results from the dynamics of strategic moves and countermoves among innovative, global firms: a condition of rapidly escalating competition that is based on price- quality positioning, efforts to create new know-how and achieve first-mover advantage, and battles to protect or to invade established product or geographic markets (discussed in more detail in Chapter 5).

The Global Economy

A global economy is one in which goods, services, people, skills, and ideas move freely across geographic borders.

The emergence of this global economy results in a number of challenges and opportunities. For instance, Europe is now the world’s largest single market (despite the difficulties of

1-4 Chapter 1: Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness adapting to multiple national cultures and the lack of a single currency. The European Union has become one of the world’s largest markets, with 700 million potential customers.

Today, China is seen as an extremely competitive market in which local market-seeking MNCs (multinational corporations) fiercely compete against other MNCs and local low-cost producers. China has long been viewed as a low-cost producer of goods, but here’s an interesting twist. China is now an exporter of local management talent. Procter & Gamble actually exports Chinese management talent; it has been dispatching more Chinese abroad than it has been importing expatriates to China.

Teaching Note: The relative competitiveness of nations can be found in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report, which can be accessed for free on the Internet. It is useful to assemble these data into an overhead or PowerPoint slide and show it in class. Students find it interesting to see where their country stands relative to the others listed. Allow enough time for them to see these numbers and sort out what it all means.

STRATEGIC FOCUS Starbucks is a New Economy Multinational

Starbucks is a large and innovative multinational firm with growth expectations in both its domestic and international markets. It plans to significantly increase its presence in Asian markets and has tailored its strategy to local conditions to position itself for growth (store size, flavors, and teas). In fact, Starbucks expects China to become its second largest market in the very near future. Vietnam and India are additional markets the company is targeting. On the other hand, the company’s experience in Europe has been mixed. The European ‘coffee culture,’ built around the café experience, was difficult for the company to penetrate with its traditional business model. To grow in Europe, Starbucks is now building larger stores to improve seating and encourage customers to linger, and developed products to appeal to local (country) cultures and tastes. In addition, the company has set its sights on other markets (instant coffee, single-serving coffee, tea, juice, and bakery).

Teaching Note: Starbucks helps illustrate just how global business has become and how companies must adapt strategy to align with local conditions. A one- size-fits-all approach probably has limited potential for success, especially in consumer products. Ask students if they have visited a Starbucks in another country and, if so, to identify some of the ways the company caters to local conditions. Ask students to evaluate the importance of the Starbucks brand as it continues to expand and what might hinder the company’s expansion efforts in the countries profiled in the Strategic Focus.

The March of Globalization

Globalization is the increasing economic interdependence among countries as reflected in the flow of goods and services, financial capital, and knowledge across country borders. This is illustrated by the following: © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

 Financial capital might be obtained in one national market and used to buy raw materials in another one.  Manufacturing equipment bought from another market produces products sold in yet another market.  Globalization enhances the available range of opportunities for firms.

Global competition has increased performance standards in many dimensions, including quality, cost, productivity, product introduction time, and operational efficiency. Moreover, these standards are not static; they are exacting, requiring continuous improvement from a firm and its employees. Thus, companies must improve their capabilities and individual workers need to sharpen their skills. In the twenty-first century competitive landscape, only firms that meet, and perhaps exceed, global standards are likely to earn strategic competitiveness.

Teaching Note: As a result of the new competitive landscape, firms of all sizes must re-think how they can achieve strategic competitiveness by positioning themselves to ask questions from a more global perspective to enable them to (at least) meet or exceed global standards:  Where should value-adding activities be performed?  Where are the most cost-effective markets for new capital?  Can products designed in one market be successfully adapted for sale in others?  How can we develop cooperative relationships or joint ventures with other firms that will enable us to capitalize on international growth opportunities?

Although globalization seems an attractive strategy for competing in the current competitive landscape, there are risks as well. These include such factors as:  The “liability of foreignness” (i.e., the risk of competing internationally)  Overdiversification beyond the firm’s ability to successfully manage operations in multiple foreign markets

A point to emphasize: entry into international markets requires proper use of the strategic management process.

Though global markets are attractive strategic options for some companies, they are not the only source of strategic competitiveness. In fact, for most companies, even for those capable of competing successfully in global markets, it is critical to remain committed to and strategically competitive in the domestic market. And domestic markets can be testing grounds for possibly entering an international market at some point in the future.

Teaching Note: Indicate that the risks that often accompany internationalization and strategies for minimizing their impact on firms are discussed in more detail in Chapter 8.

Teaching Note: As a result of globalization and the spread of technology,

competition will become more intense. Some principles to consider include the following:  Customers will continue to expect high levels of product quality at competitive prices.  Global competition will continue to pressure companies to shorten product development-introduction time frames.  Strategically competitive companies successfully leverage insights learned both in domestic and global markets, modifying them as necessary.  Before a company can hope to achieve any measure of success in global markets, it must be strategically competitive in its domestic market.

Technology and Technological Changes

Three technological trends and conditions are significantly altering the nature of competition:  Increasing rate of technological change and diffusion  The information age  Increasing knowledge intensity

Technologic Diffusion and Disruptive Technologies

Both the rate of change and the introduction of new technologies have increased greatly over the last 15 to 20 years.

A term that is used to describe rapid and consistent replacement of current technologies by new, information-intensive technologies is perpetual innovation. This implies that innovation—discussed in more detail in Chapter 13—must be continuous and carry a high priority for all organizations.

The shorter product life cycles that result from rapid diffusion of innovation often means that products may be replicated within very short time periods, placing a competitive premium on a firm’s ability to rapidly introduce new products into the marketplace. In fact, speed-to-market may become the sole source of competitive advantage. In the computer industry during the early 1980s, hard disk drives would typically remain current for four to six years, after which a new and better product became available. By the late 1980s, the expected life had fallen to two to three years. By the 1990s, it was just six to nine months.

The rapid diffusion of innovation may have made patents a source of competitive advantage only in the pharmaceutical and chemical industries. Many firms do not file patent applications to safeguard (for at least a time) the technical knowledge that would be disclosed explicitly in a patent application.

Disruptive technologies (in line with the Schumpeterian notion of “creative destruction”) can destroy the value of existing technologies by replacing them with new ones. Current examples include the success of iPods, PDAs, and WiFi.

The Information Age

Changes in information technology have made rapid access to information available to firms all over the world, regardless of size. Consider the rapid growth in the following technologies: personal computers (PCs), cellular phones, computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and massive databases. These examples show how information is used differently as a result of new technologies. The ability to access and use information has become an important source of competitive advantage in almost every industry.  There have been dramatic changes in information technology in recent years.  The number of PCs is expected to grow to 2.3 billion by 2015.  The declining cost of information technology.  The Internet provides an information-carrying infrastructure available to individuals and firms worldwide.

The ability to access a high level of relatively inexpensive information has created strategic opportunities for many information-intensive businesses. For example, retailers now can use the Internet to provide shopping to customers virtually anywhere.

Increasing Knowledge Intensity

It is becoming increasingly apparent that knowledge—information, intelligence, and expertise—is a critical organizational resource, and increasingly, a source of competitive advantage. As a result,  Many companies are working to convert the accumulated knowledge of employees into a corporate asset;  Shareholder value is increasingly influenced by the value of a firm’s intangible assets, such as knowledge;  There is a strong link between knowledge and innovation.

Note: Intangible assets are discussed more fully in Chapter 3.

Teaching Note: This means that to achieve competitive advantage in the information-intensive competitive landscape, firms must move beyond accessing information to exploiting information by:  Capturing intelligence  Transforming intelligence into usable knowledge  Embedding it as organizational learning  Diffusing it rapidly throughout the organization

The implication of this discussion is that to achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns, firms must develop the ability to adapt rapidly to change or achieve strategic flexibility.

Strategic flexibility represents the set of capabilities—in all areas of their operations—that firms use to respond to the various demands and opportunities that are found in dynamic, uncertain environments. This implies that firms must develop certain capabilities, including the capacity to learn continuously, that will provide the firm with new skill sets. However, those working within firms to develop strategic flexibility should understand that the task is not an easy one, largely because of inertia that can build up over time. A firm’s focus and past core competencies may actually slow change and strategic flexibility.

Teaching Note: Firms capable of rapidly and broadly applying what they learn achieve strategic flexibility and the resulting capacity to change in ways that will increase the probability of succeeding in uncertain, hypercompetitive environments. Some firms must change dramatically to remain competitive or return to competitiveness. How often are firms able to make this shift? Overall, does it take more effort to make small, periodic changes, or to wait and make more dramatic changes when these become necessary?

Two models describing key strategic inputs to a firm's strategic actions are discussed next: the Industrial Organization (or externally focused) model and the Resource-Based (or internally focused) model.

Use the industrial organization (I/O) model to explain how firms 3 can earn above-average returns.

THE I/O MODEL OF ABOVE AVERAGE RETURNS

Teaching Note: The recommended teaching strategy for this section is to first discuss the assumptions underlying the I/O model. Then use Figure 1.2 to introduce linkages in the I/O model and provide the background for an expanded discussion of the model in Chapter 2.

The I/O or Industrial Organization model adopts an external perspective to explain that forces outside of the organization represent the dominant influences on a firm's strategic actions. In other words, this model presumes that the characteristics of and conditions present in the external environment determine the appropriateness of strategies that are formulated and implemented in order for a firm to earn above-average returns. In short, the I/O model specifies that the choice of industries in which to compete has more influence on firm performance than the decisions made by managers inside their firm.

The I/O model is based on the following four assumptions: 1. The external environment—the general, industry, and competitive environments impose pressures and constraints on firms and determine strategies that will result in superior

returns. In other words, the external environment pressures the firm to adopt strategies to meet that pressure while simultaneously constraining or limiting the scope of strategies that might be appropriate and eventually successful.

2. Most firms competing in an industry or in an industry segment control similar sets of strategically relevant resources and thus pursue similar strategies. This assumption presumes that, given a similar availability of resources, most firms competing in a specific industry (or industry segment) have similar capabilities and thus follow strategies that are similar. In other words, there are few significant differences among firms in an industry.

3. Resources used to implement strategies are highly mobile across firms. Significant differences in strategically relevant resources among firms in an industry tend to disappear because of resource mobility. Thus, any resource differences soon disappear as they are observed and acquired or learned by other firms in the industry.

4. Organizational decision-makers are assumed to be rational and committed to acting only in the best interests of the firm. The implication of this assumption is that organizational decision-makers will consistently exhibit profit-maximizing behaviors.

According to the I/O model, which was a dominant paradigm from the 1960s through the 1980s, firms must pay careful attention to the structured characteristics of the industry in which they choose to compete, searching for one that is the most attractive to the firm, given the firm's strategically relevant resources. Then, the firm must be able to successfully implement strategies required by the industry's characteristics to be able to increase their level of competitiveness. The five forces model is an analytical tool used to address and describe these industry characteristics.

FIGURE 1.2 The I/O Model of Above-Average Returns

Based on its four underlying assumptions, the I/O model prescribes a five-step process for firms to achieve above-average returns:

1. Study the external environment—general, industry, and competitive—to determine the characteristics of the external environment that will both determine and constrain the firm's strategic alternatives.

2. Locate an industry (or industries) with a high potential for returns based on the structural characteristics of the industry. A model for assessing these characteristics, the Five Forces Model of Competition, is discussed in Chapter 2.

3. Based on the characteristics of the industry in which the firm chooses to compete, strategies that are linked with above-average returns should be selected. A model or framework that can be used to assess the requirements and risks of these strategies (the generic strategies called cost leadership & differentiation) are discussed in detail in

Chapter 4.

4. Acquire or develop the critical resources—skills and assets—needed to successfully implement the strategy that has been selected. A process for scrutinizing the internal environment to identify the presence or absence of critical skills is discussed in Chapter 3. Skill-enhancement strategies, including training and development, are discussed in Chapter 11.

5. The I/O model indicates that above-average returns will accrue to firms that successfully implement relevant strategic actions that enable the firm to leverage its strengths (skills and resources) to meet the demands or pressures and constraints of the industry in which it has elected to compete. The implementation process is described in Chapters 10 through 13.

The I/O model has been supported by research indicating:  20% of firm profitability can be explained by industry characteristics  36% of firm profitability can be attributed to firm characteristics and the actions taken by the firm  Overall, this indicates a reciprocal relationship—or even an interrelationship—between industry characteristics (attractiveness) and firm strategies that result in firm performance

STRATEGIC FOCUS The Airlines Industry Exemplifies the I/O Model – Imitation and Poor Performance

The airline industry is a real-world example of the I/O model. Airlines are very similar with respect to services, routes, and performance since the industry was deregulated. When an airline does adapt something new, it is commonly imitated very quickly. A major characteristic of the industry, both in the U.S. and Europe, is consolidation. This does little to spur differentiation among competitors. The primary source of competitive advantage comes from making fewer mistakes such as lost bags, flight cancellations, and delays. In the current environment, most airlines are trying to cut costs (sometimes through scale), and generate revenue by charging for amenities that used to be provided at no cost to travelers. In the Strategic Focus, Southwest Airlines is noted as a strong performer due to the fact that it is both efficient and has developed resources and capabilities over time that its more traditional rivals have not.

Teaching Note: The airline industry has not been an attractive industry for quite some time. Even the best performers produce results that are much weaker than the average performers of many other industries. Ask students to compare some of the airlines profiled in the Strategic Focus. Ask them what factors are most important to them when they purchase a ticket and what airlines might be able to do to get their business.

Use the resource-based model to explain how firms can earn 4 above average-returns.

THE RESOURCE-BASED MODEL OF ABOVE-AVERAGE RETURNS

Teaching Note: The recommended teaching strategy for this section is similar to that suggested for the I/O model. First explain the assumptions of the resource-based model. Then use Figure 1.3 to introduce linkages in the resource-based model and provide the background for an expanded discussion of the model in Chapter 3.

The resource-based model adopts an internal perspective to explain how a firm's unique bundle or collection of internal resources and capabilities represent the foundation on which value-creating strategies should be built.

Resources are inputs into a firm's production process, such as capital equipment, individual employee's skills, patents, brand names, finance, and talented managers. These resources can be tangible or intangible.

Capabilities are the capacity for a set of resources to perform—integratively or in combination—a task or activity.

Teaching Note: Thus, according to the resource-based model, a firm's resources and capabilities—found in its internal environment—are more critical to determining the appropriateness of strategic actions than are the conditions and characteristics of the external environment. So, strategies should be selected that enable the firm to best exploit its core competencies, relative to opportunities in the external environment. One example of this is the experience of Amazon that used its capabilities to market and distribute books using the Internet successfully to capture a 20-month first-mover advantage in this new marketplace. However, Amazon’s capabilities may be imitable. In fact, many experts expect that Barnes & Noble will continue to be a formidable competitor due to its extensive resources.

Core competencies are resources and capabilities that serve as a source of competitive advantage for a firm. Often related to functional skills (e.g., marketing at Philip Morris), core competencies—when developed, nurtured, and applied throughout a firm—may result in strategic competitiveness.

FIGURE 1.3 The Resource-Based Model of Above-Average Returns

The resource-based model of above-average returns is grounded in the uniqueness of a firm's internal resources and capabilities. The five-step model describes the linkages between resource identification and strategy selection that will lead to above-average returns.

1. Firms should identify their internal resources and assess their strengths and weaknesses. The strengths and weaknesses of firm resources should be assessed relative to competitors.

2. Firms should identify the set of resources that provide the firm with capabilities that are unique to the firm, relative to its competitors. The firm should identify those capabilities that enable the firm to perform a task or activity better than its competitors.

3. Firms should determine the potential for their unique sets of resources and capabilities to outperform rivals in terms of returns. Determine how a firm’s resources and capabilities can be used to gain competitive advantage.

4. Locate an attractive industry. Determine the industry that provides the best fit between the characteristics of the industry and the firm’s resources and capabilities.

5. To attain a sustainable competitive advantage and earn above-average returns, firms should formulate and implement strategies that enable them to exploit their resources and capabilities to take advantage of opportunities in the external environment better than their competitors.

Resources and capabilities can lead to a competitive advantage when they are valuable, rare, costly to imitate, and non-substitutable.  Resources are valuable when they support taking advantage of opportunities or neutralizing external threats.  Resources are rare when possessed by few, if any, competitors.  Resources are costly to imitate when other firms cannot obtain them inexpensively (relative to other firms).  Resources are non-substitutable when they have no structural equivalents.

5 Describe vision and mission and discuss their value.

VISION AND MISSION

Teaching Note: Refer students to Figure 1.1 that indicates the link or relationship between identifying a firm's internal resources and capabilities and the conditions and characteristics of the external environment with the development of the firm's vision and mission.

Vision

Vision is a picture of what the firm wants to be, and in broad terms, what it wants to ultimately achieve. Vision is “big picture” thinking with passion that helps people feel what they are supposed to be doing.

Vision statements:  Reflect a firm’s values and aspirations  Are intended to capture the heart and mind of each employee (and hopefully, many of its other stakeholders)  Tend to be enduring, whereas its mission can change in light of changing environmental conditions  Tend to be relatively short and concise, easily remembered  Rely on input from multiple key stakeholders

Examples of vision statements:  Our vision is to be the world’s best quick service restaurant. (McDonald’s)  To make the automobile accessible to every American (Ford’s vision when established by Henry Ford)

The CEO is responsible for working with others to form the firm’s vision. However, experience shows that the most effective vision statement results when the CEO involves a host of people to develop it.

A vision statement should be clearly tied to the conditions in the firm’s external and internal environments and it must be achievable. Moreover, the decisions and actions of those involved with developing the vision must be consistent with that vision.

Mission

A firm's mission is an externally focused application of its vision that states the firm's unique purpose and the scope of its operations in product and market terms.

As with the vision, the final responsibility for forming the firm’s mission rests with the CEO, though the CEO and other top-level managers tend to involve a larger number of people in forming the mission. This is because middle- and first-level managers and other employees have more direct contact with customers and their markets.

A firm's vision and mission must provide the guidance that enables the firm to achieve the desired strategic outcomes—strategic competitiveness and above-average returns—illustrated in Figure 1.1 that enable the firm to satisfy the demands of those parties having an interest in the firm's success: organizational stakeholders.

Earning above-average returns often is not mentioned in mission statements. The reasons for this are that all firms want to earn above-average returns and that desired financial outcomes result from properly serving certain customers while trying to achieve the firm’s intended future. In fact, research has shown that having an effectively formed vision and mission has a positive effect on performance (growth in sales, profits, employment, and net worth).

6 Define stakeholders and describe their ability to influence organizations.

STAKEHOLDERS

Stakeholders are the individuals and groups who can affect and are affected by the strategic outcomes achieved and who have enforceable claims on a firm's performance.

Classification of Stakeholders

The stakeholder concept reflects that individuals and groups have a "stake" in the strategic outcomes of the firm because they can be either positively or negatively affected by those outcomes and because achieving the strategic outcomes may be dependent on the support or active participation of certain stakeholder groups.

Figure Note: Students can use Figure 1.4 to visualize the three stakeholder groups.

FIGURE 1.4 The Three Stakeholder Groups

Figure 1.4 provides a definition of a stakeholder and illustrates the three general classifications and members of each stakeholder group:  Capital market stakeholders  Product market stakeholders  Organizational stakeholders

Note: Students can use Figure 1.4 while you discuss the challenges of meeting conflicting stakeholder expectations. Teaching Note: The following table was developed from the text’s presentation (and more) to assist you in organizing a discussion of each stakeholder group's expectations or demands, potential conflicts, and stakeholder management strategies.

Stakeholder Groups, Membership and Primary Expectation or Demand

Stakeholder group Membership Primary expectation/demand Capital market Shareholders Wealth enhancement Lenders Wealth preservation Product market Customers Product reliability at lowest possible price Suppliers Receive highest sustainable prices Host communities Long-term employment, tax revenues, minimum use of public support services Unions Ideal working conditions and job security for membership

Organizational Employees Secure, dynamic, stimulating, and rewarding work environment

Teaching Note: From reviewing the primary expectations or demands of each stakeholder group, it becomes obvious that a potential for conflict exists. For instance, shareholders generally invest for wealth-maximization purposes and are therefore interested in a firm's maximizing its return on investment or ROI. However, if a firm increases its ROI by making short-term decisions, the firm can negatively affect employee or customer stakeholders.

If the firm is strategically competitive and earns above-average returns, it can afford to simultaneously satisfy all stakeholders. When earning average or below-average returns, tradeoffs must be made. At the level of average returns, firms must at least minimally satisfy all stakeholders. When returns are below average, some stakeholders can be minimally satisfied, while others may be dissatisfied.

For example, reducing the level of research and development expenditures (to increase short- term profits) enables the firm to pay out the additional short-term profits to shareholders as dividends. However, if reducing R&D expenditures results in a decline in the long-term strategic competitiveness of the firm's products or services, it is possible that employees will not enjoy a secure or rewarding career environment (which violates a primary union expectation or demand for job security for its membership). At the same time, customers may be offered products that are less reliable at unattractive prices, relative to those offered by firms that did not reduce R&D expenditures.

Thus, the stakeholder management process may involve a series of tradeoffs that is dependent on the extent to which the firm is dependent on the support of each affected stakeholder and the firm's ability to earn above-average returns.

Teaching Note: Stakeholder management has introduced some interesting notions into business practice. For example, business schools typically teach that there are three main stakeholder groups (owners, customers, and employees) and that they should be tended to in that order. That is, it is important to begin with the idea that the primary purpose of the firm is to maximize shareholder wealth (i.e., tend to the interests of the owners first). Then it is common to introduce notions such as, “The customer is always right.” This suggests that customer interests are to be tended to next. Finally, we get around to looking to the needs of employees, if resources make that possible. This is the standard approach, but some firms have turned this idea on its head. For example, Southwest Airlines has been extremely successful by taking great efforts to select the right employees and treat them well, which then spills over into appropriate treatment of the customer. As you might guess, the company assumes that these emphases will naturally lead to positive outcomes for stockholders as well (as has been the case). This issue can lead to interesting discussions with students about their thoughts on the topic. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

7 Describe the work of strategic leaders.

STRATEGIC LEADERS

Teaching Note: One way of covering this section is through a series of questions and answers as presented in the following format.

Who are strategic leaders?

Although it depends on the size of the organization, all organizations have a CEO or top manager and this individual is the primary organizational strategist in every organization. Small organizations may have a single strategist: the CEO or owner. Large organizations may have few or several top-level managers, executives, or a top management team. All of these individuals are organizational strategists.

What are the responsibilities of strategic leaders?

Top managers play decisive roles in firms’ efforts to achieve their desired strategic outcomes. As organizational strategists, top managers are responsible for deciding how resources will be developed or acquired, at what cost, and how they will be used or allocated throughout the organization. Strategists also must consider the risks of actions under consideration, along with the firm’s vision and managers’ strategic orientations.

Organizational strategists also are responsible for determining how the organization does business. This responsibility is reflected in the organizational culture, which refers to the complex set of ideologies, symbols, and core values shared throughout the firm and that influences the way it conducts business. The organization’s culture is the social energy that drives—or fails to drive—the organization.

The Work of Effective Strategic Leaders

Though it seems simplistic, performing their role effectively requires strategists to work hard, perform thorough analyses of available information, be brutally honest, desire high performance, exercise common sense, think clearly, and ask questions and listen. In addition, strategic leaders must be able to “think seriously and deeply … about the purposes of the organizations they head or functions they perform, about the strategies, tactics, technologies, systems, and people necessary to attain these purposes and about the important questions that always need to be asked.” Additionally, effective strategic leaders work to set an ethical tone in their firms.

Strategists work long hours and face ambiguous decision situations, but they also have opportunities to dream and act in concert with a compelling vision that motivates others in creating competitive advantage.

Predicting Outcomes of Strategic Decisions: Profit Pools © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

Top-level managers try to predict the outcomes of their strategic decisions before they are implemented, but this is sometimes very difficult to do. Those firms that do a better job of anticipating the outcomes of strategic moves will obviously be in a better position to succeed. One way to do this is by mapping out the profit pools of an industry. Profit pools are the total profits earned in an industry at all points along the value chain. Four steps are involved: 1. Define the pool’s boundaries 2. Estimate the pool’s overall size 3. Estimate the size of the value-chain activity in the pool 4. Reconcile the calculations

8 Explain the strategic management process.

THE STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS

Teaching Note: The final section of this chapter reviews Figure 1.1 (The Strategic Management Process), providing both an outline of the process and the framework for the next 12 chapters. Thus, students should refer back to Figure 1.1 as you present the material to come next.

Chapters 2 and 3 provide more detail regarding the strategic inputs to the strategic management process: analysis of the firm's external and internal environments that must be performed so that sufficient knowledge is developed regarding external opportunities and internal capabilities. This enables the development of the firm's vision and mission.

Chapters 4 through 9 discuss the strategy formulation stage of the process. Topics covered include:  Deciding on business-level strategy, or how to compete in a given business (Chapter 4)  Understanding competitive dynamics, in that strategies are not formulated and implemented in isolation but require understanding and responding to competitors' actions (Chapter 5)  Setting corporate-level strategy, or deciding in which industries or businesses the firm will compete, how resources will be allocated, and how the different business units will be managed (Chapter 6)  The acquisition of business units and the restructuring of the firm’s portfolio of businesses (Chapter 7)  Selecting appropriate international strategies that are consistent with the firm's resources, capabilities and core competencies, and external opportunities (Chapter 8)  Developing cooperative strategies with other firms to gain competitive advantage (Chapter 9)

The final section of the text, Chapters 10–13, examines actions necessary to effectively implement strategies. Effective implementation has a significant impact on firm performance. Topics covered include:

 Methods for governing to ensure satisfaction of stakeholder demands and attainment of strategic outcomes (Chapter 10)  Structures that are used and actions taken to control a firm's operations (Chapter 11)  Patterns of strategic leadership that are most appropriate given the competitive environment (Chapter 12)  Linkages among corporate entrepreneurship, innovation, and strategic competitiveness (Chapter 13)

Teaching Note: Students should realize that none of the chapters stands alone, just as no single step or facet of the strategic management process stands alone. If the strategic management process is to result in a firm being strategically competitive and earning above-average returns, all facets of the process must be treated as both interdependent and interrelated.

ANSWERS TO REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. What are strategic competitiveness, strategy, competitive advantage, above-average returns, and the strategic management process?

Strategic competitiveness is achieved when a firm successfully formulates and implements a value-creating strategy.

A strategy is an integrated and coordinated set of commitments and actions designed to exploit core competencies and gain a competitive advantage.

A competitive advantage is achieved when a firm’s current and potential competitors either are not able to simultaneously formulate and implement its value-creating strategy, are unable to duplicate the benefits of the strategy, or find the strategy too costly to imitate.

Above-average returns are returns that are in excess of what an investor expects to earn from other investments with a similar level or amount of risk.

The strategic management process (see Figure 1.1) is the full set of commitments, decisions, and actions required for a firm to achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns.

2. What are the characteristics of the current competitive landscape? What two factors are the primary drivers of this landscape?

In the current competitive landscape, the nature of competition has changed. As a result, managers making strategic decisions must adopt a new mind-set that is global in orientation. Firms must learn to compete in highly chaotic environments that produce disorder and a great deal of uncertainty.

The two primary factors that have created the current competitive landscape are globalization of industries and markets and rapid and significant technological change. The implication for business firms is that to be successful, they must be able to meet or exceed global performance standards (in terms of such factors as quality, price, product features, speed to market) and be able to keep up with both the rapid pace of technological change as well as the rapid diffusion of innovation.

3. According to the I/O model, what should a firm do to earn above-average returns?

The I/O model suggests that conditions and characteristics of the external environment (the general, industry, and competitive environments) are the primary inputs to and determinants of strategies that firms should formulate and implement to earn above- average returns. Assumptions of the I/O model are that: (1) the external environment imposes pressures and constraints that determine which strategies will result in superior profitability, (2) most firms competing in an industry (or industry segment) control similar strategically relevant resources and pursue similar strategies in light of resource similarity, (3) resources used to implement strategies are highly mobile across firms, and (4) decision makers are assumed to be rational and committed to acting in the firm’s best interests.

The I/O model thus challenges firms to seek out the industry (or industry segment) with the greatest profit potential and then learn how to use their resources to implement value- creating strategies given the structural characteristics of the industry.

4. What does the resource-based model suggest a firm should do to earn above- average returns?

The resource-based model assumes that each firm is a collection of unique resources and capabilities that provides the basis for its strategy and is the primary source of its profitability. It also assumes that over time, firms acquire different resources and develop unique capabilities. Thus, all firms competing within an industry (or industry segment) may not possess the same strategically relevant resources and capabilities. In addition, resources may not be highly mobile across firms.

Thus, the resource-based model challenges firms to formulate and implement strategies that allow the firm to best exploit its core competencies—capabilities that are valuable, rare, costly to imitate, and non-substitutable—relative to opportunities in the external environment. Resources and capabilities that meet the criteria of core competencies then serve as the basis of a firm's sustainable competitive advantage, enabling it to achieve strategic competitiveness and earn above-average returns.

5. What are vision and mission? What is their value for the strategic management process?

Vision is a picture of what the firm wants to be, and in broad terms, what it wants to ultimately achieve. Vision is “big picture” thinking with passion that helps people feel © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

what they are supposed to be doing.

Strategic mission is externally focused and represents a statement of a firm's unique purpose and the scope of its operations in product and market terms. It provides general descriptions of the products a firm intends to produce and the markets it will serve using its internally based core competencies.

The differences between vision and mission are important because of their different focuses. However, they are both highly interdependent and add value to the strategic management process. The externally focused mission provides a sense of purpose for the firm by indicating the products to be provided to specific markets, while the internally set vision indicates what ultimately will be achieved. In other words, taken together, the vision and mission will provide a firm’s managers with the insights needed to effectively formulate and implement the firm’s strategies.

6. What are stakeholders? How do the three primary stakeholder groups influence organizations?

Stakeholders are individuals and groups who can affect and are affected by strategic outcomes achieved and who have enforceable claims on a firm's performance. In other words, stakeholders have a stake (or a vested interest) in the actions of the firm. Stakeholders can influence organizations because they have the ability to withhold participation that is essential to a firm's survival, competitiveness, and profitability. The three primary stakeholder groups are: (1) capital market stakeholders, e.g., shareholders, lenders, (2) product market stakeholders, e.g., customers, suppliers, host communities, unions, and (3) organizational stakeholders, e.g., employees, managers, and others.

There are many ways that stakeholders can influence organizations. For example, dissatisfied lenders can impose stricter covenants on subsequent borrowing of capital. Dissatisfied stockholders can reflect this sentiment through several means, including selling their stock (which can have a negative effect on its price). Dissatisfied employees can organize for collective bargaining. Dissatisfied community groups could express their disapproval by boycotting the firm’s goods. Stakeholder groups each have ways of bringing their influence to bear on the firm.

7. How would you describe the work of strategic leaders?

Strategic leaders are people located in different parts of the firm using the strategic management process to help the firm reach its vision and mission. Regardless of their location in the firm, successful strategic leaders are decisive and committed to nurturing those around them and are committed to helping the firm create value for customers and returns for shareholders and other stakeholders.

Strategic leaders can be described as hard working, thorough, honest, questioning, visionary, persuasive, analytical, and decision makers. They also have a penchant for wanting the firm and its people to accomplish more. © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

The work of strategists includes scanning the environment—both internally and externally—to seek out information that will assist the firm in achieving its mission and satisfying its vision. Strategists would think about how the resources and capabilities of the firm could be nurtured and exploited to develop core competencies that would enable the firm to exploit environmental opportunities, achieve strategic competitiveness, and attain a competitive advantage that results in above-average returns.

8. What are the elements of the strategic management process? How are they interrelated?

The parts of the strategic management process (illustrated in Figure 1.1) are strategic inputs, strategic actions and strategic outcomes. Strategic inputs are represented by the firm’s vision and mission that result from the assessment of the firm’s resources, capabilities, and competencies and conditions in the external environment. These strategic inputs—vision and mission—drive the firm’s strategic actions or the formulation and implementation of strategy. The strategic outcomes of successfully formulating and implementing value-creating strategies are strategic competitiveness and above-average returns. A feedback loop links strategic outcomes with strategic inputs.

INSTRUCTOR'S NOTES FOR EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

EXERCISE 1: Stakeholder analysis, Strategic Planning and Strategic Leadership

This exercise is meant to piece together many of the elements that are covered in chapter 1 such as stakeholders, strategic management process and strategic leadership. The exercise brings this all together by asking teams of students to identify a not for profit firm. This forum is used because many times not for profits face unique stakeholder challenges that are interesting to uncover. Additionally most not for profits put their strategic plans in easy to find places on their websites. The key for the student teams is to identify the stakeholders and relevant issues that may face them if the firm implements the items in its strategic plan.

You may also make this an individual assignment rather than team if so desired as the exercise would fit well in either scenario.

Each team should present its findings as regards the exercise. The instructor should pay particular attention to the teams attentiveness regarding stakeholders.

As the team presents, have the students listening participate by: 1. Identifying if there are any stakeholders that seem to be missing. 2. Wrap a discussion around whether the stakeholders the team identifies would support or not the strategic action identified 3. Wrap a discussion around the strategic leaders’ needed actions to gain stakeholder © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

support, if that support would be critical to the strategic actions successful implementation. 4. The instructor can also create an infesting discussion about which stakeholders are most important and whether each stakeholder needs to be considered when strategic actions are contemplated.

EXERCISE 2: PUTTING ABOVE AVERAGE RETURNS TO THE I/O MODEL TEST

In this exercise, students are asked to individually select a company from Fortune 500’s “Top Companies: Most Profitable Firms” list. The 2012 list is available directly at: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2012/performers/companies/profits/. Ask for student volunteers to present their findings. You may opt to select a particular industry in which students have selected several firms as a basis of comparison. During the presentations, have the others students in the class participate by: Identifying if there are missing external environment pressures and constraints on the firm in question and identify missing resources.

Following the presentations, lead a discussion with the whole class about whether or not the I/O model explains these firms’ above average returns.

INSTRUCTOR'S NOTES FOR VIDEO EXERCISES

Title: BRAZIL: AN EMERGING ECONOMY WITH STRATEGIC COMPETITIVENESS RT : 7:35 Topic Key: Strategic Competitiveness, Strategy, Hypercompetition, Global Economy, Resources, Capabilities, Core Competencies, Stakeholders, Strategic Leaders

With stagnant economies across the world, Brazil’s economy is growing at 7%--3 times faster than America. Brazil is a huge country, slightly larger than the continental US with vast expanses of arable farmland, an abundance of natural resources, and 14% of the world’s fresh water. With the world’s greenest economy, 80% of Brazil’s electricity comes from hydropower and it has the most sophisticated biofuel industry in the world. Brazil is already the world’s largest producer of iron ore and leading exporter of beef, chicken, orange juice, sugar, coffee, and tobacco. China has replaced the US as Brazil’s leading trade partner. Brazilians contend that their size can match China’s dragon-like appetite and they need Brazil to fulfill the Chinese needs. Batista, with Chinese investment, and interests in mining, transportation, oil, and gas is building a huge super port complex north of Rio that will accommodate the world’s largest tankers and speed delivery of iron ore and other resources to Asia. Commodities are not the only things driving the Brazilian boom—Brazil has a substantial manufacturing base and a large auto industry. The world’s third largest aircraft manufacturer also resides in Brazil. Batista says

1-23 Chapter 1: Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness that the one thing Brazil needs more of is skilled labor—more engineers, which he now must import from America. He indicates that Brazil is walking into a phase of almost full employment with the creation of 1.5 million jobs in one year.

Brazil has seen periods of prosperity before—only to have the bubbles burst. Brazil spent billions in the 50s and 60s moving its capital to Savannah where it built the futuristic city Brazilia. Brazil then borrowed billions more to develop the county’s interior. Corruption then led to a financial collapse—2000 % inflation and the largest financial rescue package in the history of the international monetary fund. Lula, as President of Brazil, a metal worker with a 4th grade education, receives much credit for turning the country around. Lula, in an interview, indicates that Brazil was a capitalist country without capital. He asserts that Brazil needed a metal worker with socialist views to bring more money for banks, more sales for car companies, and more money to the workers. When asked how, Lula says the success of an elected official is in the art of doing what is obvious—what everyone knows needs to be done but some insist on doing differently. Lula recognized the separation between the rich and poor of Brazil. He gave the poor families a monthly stipend of $115 dollars just for sending their kids to school and taking them to the doctor. Such an infusion of cash helped lift 21 million out of poverty and into the lower middle class, which created an untapped market of first-time buyers for refrigerators and cars. Lula also encouraged growth and development by businesses but created tight banking regulations to maintain conservative fiscal policies.

Historically, Brazil had ignored the festering slums overlooking Rio, which was a staging area for street crimes and drug gangs, but now gets the attention of military police. Brazil has massive problems with infrastructure—traffic and roads. Ninety percent of the roads remain unpaved and little public transportation exists in the cities. Delays in building and renovation exist for the upcoming 2014 World Cup. Lula, in the interview, indicates that Brazil will organize the most extraordinary World Cup ever. He says that as he leaves office he told his people that they are not second class citizens—we can get things done, and we can believe in ourselves. People have started to believe—meaning that he expects his momentum to continue for the country.

Also check out http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/07/31/60minutes/main20073776.shtml

Suggested Discussion Questions and Answers

1. How is Brazil a strategic competitor? Text: Strategic competitiveness is achieved when a firm successfully formulates and implements a value-creating strategy. Strategic competitor: Brazil, after virtual collapse, has become entrepreneurial and market oriented, and has used its competencies for innovation and service. Brazil formulated and implemented a value-creating strategy consisting of: (1) utilizing its natural resources to create hydropower and a biofuel industry, (2) increasing production and exports of commodities and manufactured components such as autos and aircrafts, (3) increasing trade opportunities through the building of port © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

complexes, and (4) using fused resources to raise the standard of living among the country’s poor. Further, Brazil has built on its external and internal resources, created a mission, chosen a strategy, and implemented it through entrepreneurial leadership that has produced above-average returns of a growth of 7%.

2. What is Brazil’s strategy? Text: A strategy is an integrated and coordinated set of commitments and actions designed to exploit core competencies and gain a competitive advantage. A firm has competitive advantage when it implements a strategy that creates superior value for customers and competitors are unable to duplicate or find too costly to try to imitate. Strategy: Growth and Development: Growing at 7%

3. Is Brazil a hypercompetitor? Text: Hypercompetition results from the dynamics of strategic maneuvering among global and innovative combatants. It is a condition of rapidly escalating competition based on price-quality positioning, competition to create new know- how and establish first-mover advantage, and competition to protect or invade established product or geographic markets. The emergence of a global economy and technology, specifically rapid technological change are two primary drivers of hypercompetitive environments. Hypercompetitor: The world’s greenest economy, most sophisticated biofuel industry in the world, largest producer of iron ore, leading exporter of beef, chicken, orange juice, sugar, coffee, and tobacco, third largest aircraft manufacturer, and world’s largest tankers and delivery speed of iron ore and other resources to Asia

4. What impact does Brazil have in the global economy? Impact in the global economy:  The Brazilian economy is growing at a rate of 7% with vast expanses of farmland, an abundance of natural resources, and 14% of the world’s fresh water.  As the world’s greenest economy, 80% of Brazil’s electricity comes from hydropower and it has the most sophisticated biofuel industry in the world.  Brazil is already the world’s largest producer of iron ore and leading exporter of beef, chicken, orange juice, sugar, coffee, and tobacco. China has replaced the US as Brazil’s leading trade partner.  Batista, with Chinese investment, and with interests in mining, transportation, oil, and gas is building a huge super port complex north of Rio that will accommodate the world’s largest tankers and speed delivery of iron ore and other resources to Asia.  Brazil has a substantial manufacturing base, a large auto industry, and is the world’s third largest aircraft manufacturer.

5. What resources, capabilities, and core competencies does Brazil have? Text: Resources are inputs into a firm’s production process, such as capital equipment, the skills of individual employees, patents, finances, and talented managers. A capability is the capacity for a set of resources to perform a task or an activity in an integrative manner. Core competencies are resources and capabilities that serve as a source of competitive advantage for a firm over its rivals. When resources and capabilities become, rare, valuable, costly to imitate, and non- substitutable they become core competencies. Resources: Abundance of natural resources including farmland, iron ore, and 14% of the world’s fresh water. Some evidence exists of oil. Capabilities: Ability to produce hydropower and biofuels, ability to export and distribute resources to top trade partners, ability to manufacture aircraft and autos, and to mine for iron ore Core competencies: manufacturing/production, distribution/transportation and trade, research and development through green technology, biofuel development, and mining

6. Identify and explain the stakeholders associated with Brazil’s thriving economy. Text: Stakeholders are those who can affect, and are affected by, a firm’s strategic outcomes Stakeholders:  Brazilian populations: will be affected by increases in standards of living/changes in social class, increased goods produced and exported, increased economic opportunities (employment)  Global populations: will be affected by quality of goods produced and exported from Brazil  Trading partners: will received greater number of products and opportunities for exchange and appropriate supply to meet population satisfaction  Brazilian government: higher approval ratings  Industry developers: lucrative opportunities to reside and do business in Brazil  Brazilian industries: increased demand for production and manufacturing resources

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS AND EXERCISES

The following questions and exercises can be presented for in-class discussion or assigned as homework.

Application Discussion Questions

1. Business success is often tied to effectively managed strategies. Using the Internet, study Starbuck’s current performance. Based on analysis, do you judge Starbucks to be a © 2015 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

success? Why or why not? 2. Choose several firms in your local community with which you are familiar. Describe the twenty-first century competitive landscape to them, and ask for their feedback about how they anticipate that the landscape will affect their operations during the next five years. 3. Select an organization (e.g., school, club, or church) that is important to you. Who are the organization’s stakeholders? What degree of influence do you believe each has over the organization and why? 4. Are you a stakeholder at your university or college? If so, of what stakeholder group or groups are you a part? 5. Think of an industry in which you want to work. In your opinion, which of the three primary stakeholder groups is the most powerful in that industry today? Why? Which do you expect to be the most powerful group in five years? Why? 6. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? “I think managers have little responsibility for the failure of business firms.” Justify your view. 7. Do vision and mission have any meaning in your personal life? If so, describe it. Are your current actions being guided by a vision and mission? If not, why not?

Ethics Questions

1. Can a firm achieve a competitive advantage and, thereby, strategic competitiveness without acting ethically? Explain. 2. What are a firm’s ethical responsibilities if it earns above-average returns? 3. What are some of the critical ethical challenges to firms competing in the global economy? 4. How should ethical considerations be included in analyses of a firm’s internal and external environments? 5. Can ethical issues be integrated into a firm’s vision and mission? Explain. 6. What is the relationship between ethics and stakeholders? 7. What is the importance of ethics for organizational strategists?

Internet Exercise

Internet-based services depend heavily on continuous change and rapid strategic decision making. Companies such as Amazon.com that rely on Internet users for their customer base have demonstrated a distinct competitive advantage in serving their customers well. Barnes & Noble (http://www.barnesandnoble.com) is one of Amazon.com’s competitors in the online book and music markets. How does this Web-based expansion affect the stakeholders of each? How does the entrance of these profitable retailers into the online market affect Amazon.com’s competitive advantage?

*e-project: Using other Web resources, such as current business press and financial reports, discuss Amazon.com’s continued growth and limited profits.